Blue Streaks off to historic conference start

The John Carroll University baseball team played eight games in six days to start their season. In the three weeks since, the squad has only played six games.

The good news: their post-Florida record is still perfect.

After a hard fought 4-1 win against Ohio Wesleyan University on Thursday, March 27, the Blue Streaks demolished Wilmington College in a doubleheader on Monday, March 31. JCU outscored the Quakers 20-2 in the afternoon series.

With the wins, JCU is now 6-0 since their spring break trip and 11-6 overall on the season. Interestingly enough, the last time the Blue Streaks were 4-0 in Ohio Athletic Conference play, head coach Marc Thibeault was a senior pitcher and outfielder for the team.

After sweeping Mount Union on March 24, the Blue Streaks had momentum going into their contest with OWU in Delaware, Ohio.

Junior Andrew Doring started the contest for JCU, giving up one hit in just two innings in the victory. Freshman Mark Materise, seniors Billy Turosky Kevin Rosinski and junior Anthony Libertini and all saw action on the mound.

Libertini earned his second win of 2014 and Rosinski recorded his third save.

The Blue Streaks plated all but one of their four runs in the first inning.

Senior Mitchell Herringshaw smoked a double to score junior Bobby Sabatino, and senior Chet Lauer crushed a home run two batters later to give JCU a 3-0 lead.

The final run came when freshman Jake Miller reached base on a fielder’s choice, scoring sophomore Tyler Gentile.

The Wilmington series felt more like an exhibition for the Blue Streaks. In game one, sophomore Aaron LaPaglia won his fourth straight start, tossing eight innings in the 11-2 win.

The final score was padded by a five-run ninth inning, including a home run off the bat of senior Jimmy Spagna. Huddle, Sabatino and Spagna all had three-hit games.

In the second game, pitching was once again strong for JCU. Sophomore Brandon Maddern fired the first complete game shutout in five years, adding more accolades days after being named the OAC Pitcher of the Week.

Maddern struck out the side in the first inning and tied the second most single-game strikeouts in program history, fanning 11 Quakers.

With the sophomore on the mound, JCU rolled to a 9-0 victory in game two. Junior David Lykens drove in two runs in the contest, while Huddle brought his hit total for the day to seven after reaching base four times.

Editor’s Note: JCU defeated Ohio Wesleyan 16-5 on Tuesday, April 1. For stats and a recap of the game, check out jcusports.com.